A Modern Urban Tragedy in a Rural setting (Calgary Herald)

Nicholas Baier 'kind, gentle, caring person:' family

The mourning Baier family has issued a statement to the media

Copy image from the Olds College Agriculture Management yearbook page of alleged victim Nicholas Baier following a overnight incident at the Texas Mickey Bar in Olds, Alta., on Oct. 29, 2010. An 18-year-old was struck by a car and killed in the local bar parking lot after the driver of the car had been aske

Photograph by: Colleen De Neve, Calgary Herald

From the family of Nicholas Baier:

Nicholas Baier grew up living and loving life on the family ranch. From an early age Nicholas was immersed in the farm and ranch lifestyle by his parents and grandparents. Raised in the small farming community, Nicholas was brought up with true country roots and values; hard working, respectful and always had a kind smile for everyone.

Nicholas was a kind, gentle, caring person who was liked by everyone he met and never had a harsh word to say against anyone. Nicholas was happiest working out on the ranch, coming home from Olds College every weekend and phoning every night to stay abreast of the happenings on the farm. Not one for materialistic things, Nicholas was happy as long as he had his Wranglers and pocketknife. His dream since he was a little boy was to work with his family on the ranch; he was in Olds working toward that dream.

Nicholas never complained about the long hours and hard work that living on a farm entails, he truly had a passion for the lifestyle and had a love of animals, especially his dogs. His parents pride and joy shone through every time they spoke of Nicholas and his desire to come home to the farm. Nicholas and his sister were best friends, always side by side, doing chores, riding quads and training the dogs.

Nicholas was a gifted student, excelling in Math and Sciences. Nicholas pulled off high grades with only minimal studying, electing to be outside working rather than inside with books. He was valedictorian of his graduating class in 2009 and was a keen student at Olds College.

Nicholas was a shy and quiet kid, and was only just starting to come out of his shell. For those who got to know him, they were indeed lucky as they got to see the genuine, caring and loving person that Nicholas was.

The family and friends of Nicholas Baier cannot, nor will ever, understand the senseless act that has taken Nicholas from us. We can only hope that the judicial system will act to ensure that the accused will never have another opportunity to put another family through the pain, loss and angst that we are suffering. We ask that the media respect the wishes of the family for privacy at our time of grieving; there will be no further comments to the media.